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Lift Up Thine Eyes

July 7, 2010

Some people seem never to age. But the rest of us (most of us) get to a point where we take a glance at the mirror and think: "Who is this person and what did she do with my face?" No matter how old we get, we seem to think of ourselves as frozen in time, that is, the time when we were in our 20's and early 30's.

Yes, we see those prominent veins on our hands and we notice the bulge resting pear-like at our midsections, but nothing shows our age as much as our faces. We don't like what we see there, and we just can't get used to our aging faces. This is the time to start thinking about cosmetic surgery. One of the best surgeries for fighting the vagaries of time is the eyelid lift (blepharoplasty).

Baggy Lids

When we look at a person's face, our eyes are drawn to their own before we ever notice flaws such as big noses or jowly jowls. Baggy, droopy lids make you look tired. They make you appear older than your age.

What blepharoplasty does is to rejuvenate the areas surrounding your eyes, so that you're left looking years younger and quite natural, too. Experts say this surgical procedure can take 5 or even 10 years off your appearance.

But blepharoplasty isn't only about appearances. In some cases, the sagging skin of the eyelids is so severe it impairs the vision. In such cases, this surgery can restore quality of life for the patient.

Droopy Skin

During blepharoplasty, your surgeon makes an incision to follow the natural line of the crease in your eyelid. Excess muscle and fatty tissues can then be removed from the area. This serves to eliminate the appearance of puffiness in the eye area. At this point, the surgeon removes excess, droopy skin. The final part of the surgery is delicate work and involves careful suturing of the incision.

The surgery takes anywhere from 1-3 hours. The patient can choose to have surgery on both the upper and lower lids. Recovery is fast and most patients feel fully recovered within 10 days.

After the surgery, you may notice you are sensitive to light. There may also be some dry eye and it's probable that there will be some swelling and bruising. These symptoms should disappear after 10 days or so and you can return to work at this time. It's best to avoid strenuous activities like exercise or sports for a few weeks after having a blepharoplasty.

Be ready for it—when you return to work, the comments are going to flow in: "That must have been some vacation! You look about ten years younger!!"

You, with the wisdom that comes with your age, will give a Mona Lisa smile and just say, "Thank you."